Keys to the Game: Michigan football at Ohio State

Michigan is headed to Columbus to take on the best college football team money can buy (for now). Head coach Ryan Day is extremely confident, puffing out his chest now that the worst Michigan team he’ll ever face is heading into town, his team a three-touchdown favorite. 

RELATED: Kirk Campbell on OSU: ‘We’ve studied them 365 days a year’

Yes, it would take a lot to go right for Michigan to win a fourth straight in the series, but the U-M team isn’t shying away from the challenge. They are fired up to “shock the world,” and there is still a lot of talent on this team, including a matchup or two in their favor. 

Head coach Sherrone Moore seemed genuinely excited during his Monday press conference. 

“I think you put them in these environments, whether it’s practice and different things, and you try to cause uncomfortability throughout practice [to prepare] … whether it’s noise, whether it’s movement, whatever you can do to put the guys in a situation,” Moore said. “But our guys are excited and ready for it, so it’s more of calming them down than bringing them up. Because if you can’t get hype for this game, then you probably [don’t have a] pulse. There’s not much you’ve got to say to get them hyped for this one.”

It’s execution, though, not emotion that’s going to play the biggest role if the Wolverines are going to win. They showed positive signs against Northwestern in playing better in spots than they had all year. While the opponent is much better this week, that’s a start. 

Here are the keys to a Michigan upset victory Saturday:

Michigan Key No. 1: Shorten the game  

There are many ways to do this, but it’s mainly about keeping drives alive, running the ball sufficiently, and not keeping the defense on the field too long. They can’t go three-and-out and give the ball back to the explosive OSU offense immediately and hope to have a chance the way they did in 2022, when the defense kept holding on until an explosive offense got going. 

That means the offensive line is going to have to play its best game of the year and be the aggressor. Guys up front have to play with intention, not reaction — there might be some mistakes, but this is one of those games in which you have to be on the offensive and punch guys in the mouth, so to speak, to send a message — “we’re going to run the ball on you.”

“We’ve got to do our jobs up front,” Moore said. “Obviously, our guys played really well last game. I thought they played with great technique, great fundamentals, great eyes, discipline. So, they’ve got to do that this game and do it at an even higher level.

“They’ll be prepared. The guys have been in since the game broke, watching film and doing those things as they are every week. I’m really excited about that matchup.”

Michigan Key No. 2: Control the OSU offense with the front seven on defense

Particularly the front four, led by defensive tackle Mason Graham in the middle and Josaiah Stewart on the edge. This Ohio State offensive line is banged up, and there are going to be opportunities for a defense that’s been outstanding the last six quarters to set the tone early by stopping the run and making quarterback Will Howard uncomfortable. 

From there, it’s up to the guys on the back end to play their best game of the year against an elite group of receivers. A lot of it’s going to come down to what defensive coordinator Wink Martindale comes up with to confuse Howard, too, and perhaps force him into some mistakes. But it all starts up front, and those guys have played some of their best ball over the last few games.

“Great team defense, great communication, playing with great fundamentals, eyes, angles … really all the fundamental pillars that we talk about,” Moore said. “You can see it on film constantly, whether it was the last two quarters at Indiana or this past game. 

“… They’ve done a great job. They’ve played together, and they’ve had a lot of fun doing it.”

Michigan Key No. 3: Win the turnover and special teams battles 

Let’s be honest — Michigan probably isn’t winning this game if it isn’t on the positive end of the former, and maybe by a decent margin. This has not been a good road team against even average football teams (at least offensively), and short fields against this offense would be disastrous. Likewise, short fields are going to be the best opportunity to score against the best defense U-M will have faced all year. 

“They’re as good as any defense in the country,” Moore said. “They’re a complete defense — got great skill, got great talent, do a good job with the scheme. 

“It’s something we’re familiar with. We’ve studied, we’ve watched, and they’re a really good team. So, we’d have to go execute at a high level to go win.”

To say the least. The last three years were pretty much no-doubters (though last year got dicey, Michigan controlled much of the game). This year, it’s going to take some breaks … maybe a big Jordan Marshall kick return on a cold day?

The breakdown: Michigan football at Ohio State

Two weeks ago, we’d have treated a trip to Columbus like the funeral march it was back in the Rich Rodriguez era and much of the Brady Hoke era (though to his credit, Hoke often played the Buckeyes tough). A 50-6 win over Northwestern might be fool’s gold, but there was good stuff in there, too, to indicate the light might have gone on a bit. 

That was especially true up front. The linemen were much better at their assignments, and Northwestern coach David Braun credited the Michigan staff for out-scheming them in situations. Receivers started to get involved, Davis Warren looked more comfortable, and the defense was dominant again. 

Moore said he believed his team was playing its best ball.

“Yeah, it feels like it,” he said. “You’ve got to go prepare, though, so you can’t rest on the laurels the last game and be satisfied. You’ve still got to stay hungry, and that’s what we’ve got to go do.”

He also thinks his team believes it can win.

“I think they do,” he said. “I think this game is all bets are off, and the guys are prepared mentally, physically to go attack. We’ve had great preparation up to this point, and then we’ve got to get on the field and do it. I feel like we can, but that’s our job to go prepare to do it.”

If they pull this one off, the season looks much different. Either way, the future is looking much brighter thanks to the events of the last few weeks. We’d love to see this one as a fourth-quarter game, though, when OSU fans squirm and its coaches pucker.